After establishing several local and national organizations to carry on that work, she built on this foundation with innovative ventures and insights into urban economic developments designed to help move Americans out of poverty.

Her long list of awards and honorary degrees include accolades from groups as diverse as Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation, John Podesta’s Center for American Progress, Goldman Sachs, as well as a MacArthur “genius” Fellowship. Her 2006 TED talk was one of the first 6 videos to launch their groundbreaking website.

Majora embodies the American Dream. She has continually set new standards of excellence with projects in her South Bronx community, while expanding her reach nationally and internationally. Her philanthropic pursuits and business interests have all pointed toward greater self-esteem and economic potential for low-income people everywhere. For more information about Majora’s work visit: http://www.majoracartergroup.com/.

John McKnight

Co-director, Asset-Based Community Development Institute, Northwestern University

John McKnight is Co-Director of the Asset-Based Community Development Institute and Professor Emeritus of Communications Studies and Education and Social Policy at Northwestern University in Evanston, IL. For more than four decades at the University his research focused on social service delivery systems, health policy, community organization, neighborhood policy and the incorporation of labeled people into community life.

McKnight’s current research focuses on developing new tools to enhance the productive powers of families, neighbors and neighborhoods. As a result of a national study of local neighborhood initiatives, McKnight and his long-time colleague, Jody Kretzmann, created the Asset-Based Community Development strategy for community building. Together, they co-authored the basic guide to asset based community development, Building Communities from the Inside Out: A Path Toward Identifying and Mobilizing a Community’s Assets. This book has become one of the nation’s best-selling guides to community development, and the methods it outlines are now utilized world-wide.

McKnight has also written two additional books – The Careless Society: Community and its Counterfeits and, together with co-author Peter Block, The Abundant Community: Awakening the Power of Families and Neighborhoods.

Peter Kageyama

Author "For the Love of the Cities"

Peter Kageyama is a community and economic development consultant based in St. Petersburg, FL. He looks at what makes cities lovable, what motivates citizens to do extraordinary things for their places. Peter speaks about how we can turn peoples’ emotional engagement with their place into tangible action and uses that excitement and energy as a much needed community development resource.

He is the co-founder and producer of the Creative Cities Summit, an interdisciplinary event that brings together citizens and practitioners around the big idea of the city. Peter is the former President of Creative Tampa Bay, a grassroots community change organization. He has spoken all over the world about bottom up community development and the amazing people that are making change happen. His book, For the Love of Cities, was recognized by Planetizen as a Top 10 Book for 2012 in urban planning, design and development. He was recently designated a special advisor to Mayor Bill Foster of St. Petersburg. To learn more about Peter’s work, please visit: http://fortheloveofcities.com/.